KHOBAR: Squash legend Amr Shabana lost his World Open title after being beaten by Nick Matthew in the semifinals Thursday, ensuring that an Englishman would win the title for the first time. Shabana, whose four world crowns have only been exceeded by the two Pakistani greats, Jansher and Jahangir Khan, could not match the movement of the tenacious Englishman here and nor could he convert the crucial game balls he had at 10-9 in both the second and third games. The 31-year-old from Cairo played more of the inventive squash in a fine match with a fascinating contrast of styles, but was slightly below the physical peak of his title-winning years. It was an important factor in a 11-6, 12-10, 12-10 defeat. At the end Shabana smashed his racket violently over his knee in frustration - though his was never a bad-tempered performance and he remains one of the sport's most popular players. Shabana led 7-2 in the second game and 9-7 in the third, and although he was breathing heavily, he was playing well enough to haul the deficit back. But Matthew kept the ball tight, and the pace high, and attacked sensibly. Matthew finished the match with a couple of dramatic retrieves which set up a front court opportunity that he took with a fast trickle round the forehand side wall to the front, leaving Shabana stranded. His opponent in the final will be his compatriot James Willstrop, who won 6-11, 14-12, 11-4, 11-8 against a third member of England's 2007 world team title-winning squad, Peter Barker. Willstrop had to save a game ball at 11-12 in the second game. “If I had gone two down against so physical a player as Pete I would have been in big trouble,” Willstrop said. – Agence France
